


Take Me Home, Country Roads

by MaxArmenta



Series: In The Deep [2]
Category: The Strange Case of Starship Iris (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Road Trip, Multi, there's a lot of food in here for some reason
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-28
Updated: 2018-11-25
Packaged: 2019-07-03 17:01:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15823164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaxArmenta/pseuds/MaxArmenta
Summary: Violet Liu did not intend to be dragged on a road-trip by a classmate along with three complete strangers. She also did not intend to become the go-to medic, nor did she mean to introduce the aforementioned strangers to her music, and she certainly did not intend to punch a guy at two AM in a Speedway parking lot. But hey, if Violet learned anything on the wild ride across the country, then it was that she contains fucking multitudes.





	1. Of Overthinking and Late Night Tea

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [College Kid Roadtrip](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/411306) by Jessica Best. 



Violet Liu did not intend to be dragged on a road-trip by a classmate along with three complete strangers. She also did not intend to become the go-to medic, nor did she mean to introduce the aforementioned strangers to her music, and she certainly did not intend to punch a guy at two AM in a Speedway parking lot. But hey, if Violet learned anything on the wild ride across the country, then it was that she contains fucking multitudes.

 

* * *

_ I Want To Believe - by Jessica Best and the Creeping Doubts _

* * *

"Alright Vi, just a few more books and then you can go home," muttered Violet Liu to herself. She pushed the metal book cart forward and then took a left towards the current sci-fi display. Glancing down onto the long list of what she'd need to restock, only a few titles were not crossed out: some Illuminae books, The Handmaid's Tale, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing, and the new Andy Weir book. Once she finished putting those on the shelves, she could grab a drink and be done for the night, finally retire to to her apartment.

As she arranged the books on the display (top having the newest titles), the music playing over the store stopped mid-My Shot. Today was a Friday, meaning it was Violet's curated playlist that was sent out to the speakers throughout the Barnes and Noble and that meant everything from ABBA to Miranda. 

"Hey Violet," shouted a familiar voice from the front desk. 

"Yeah Alvy?" Violet answered. Alvy Conners was one of the cashiers at the store and he usually worked late with Violet. Nice guy, even if he had horrible music taste, but that didn't really change the fact that she's a nervous wreck around everyone. 

"Alex's waiting for me outside in the car. It alright if you lock up?" asked Alvy, as he put his university hat on. 

Violet hesitated before replying, "Yeah, but don't forget to leave the keys on the counter." Locking up wouldn't take too long and if it did, she didn't have any plans for the night. Or for tomorrow. Or for... She shook the thought off.

Alvy smiled appreciatively. "Thanks Violet, knew I could count on you. And hey, if I don't see you before break's over, happy holidays!" With that and a wave of the hand, Alvy left the building. 

"Uh, happy holidays to you too!" called out Violet a tad too late. Drat. Well, at least she controlled the audio now. Violet pulled up last week's episode of This American Life, put in her earbuds, and pressed play before going back to shelving the books. 

After about five minutes trying to make the most appealing display, Violet was satisfied. It wasn't amazing, but sci-fi wasn't her cup of tea anyways. Speaking of that, if she hurried up, she could grab a cup before the shop next door closed for the night. She wheeled the cart into the back, locked the door, and pulled it shut. Violet liked her job enough, but it always reminded her how little room she had for books and shelves in her apartment. 

She picked up the keys from the front counter and checked that the cash registers were all locked up before turning off the main lights and closing the blinds near the front. As Ira Glass's voice spoke in her ear about animals, or bananas or something, Violet put on her jacket and left the building. 

It was sprinkling outside, a welcome change from the usual California dryness she was used to. Cars sped by on the street, windshield wipers furiously sliding back and forth. She put her hands in her pockets and walked underneath the canopies and overheads of the nearby buildings, crossing the road twice before reaching Kopchick Coffee and Beverages. For a place with a kinda crappy name, they mixed some of the finest drinks on the west coast.

Violet opened the door and her nose was immediately assaulted with the scent of coffee beans and lavender, for some reason. Taking a look around, a scentsy was plugged in near one of the tables and the store seemed to be devoid of customers. 

Behind the main counter stood Apollo Park, a student at the university like Violet. He was alright, but her experience with him was limited to after-work tea runs and her mandatory freshman math class.

“Hey Violet, how’ve you been?” he asked with the tone of someone who had hoped he could close up soon, but wasn’t completely annoyed.

She thought for a second before replying, “Well, I’ve been better, but I’m giving it the ‘old college try’. Literally and figuratively.” She smiled a bit at the end.

Apollo chuckled a bit before responding, “Well, I think we can all relate to that on one level or another. You want your usual? Might take a bit to get the stuff out and brew it, but it should be fine.”

Violet, who had long past stopped trying to figure out how Apollo remembered everything, simply replied, “Yeah that’d be good,” and took a seat at a table on the side. She took her phone out of her jacket pocket and stared at it, thinking about what she wanted to do. Before she had a chance to choose between a Wikipedia dive or reading her new e-book, the bell on the door chimed and a familiar face walked in. 

Krejjh had their hair dyed bright purple this month and they had a pair of… were those pilots goggles on their forehead? Combining that with the aviator jacket adorned with multicoloured buttons and jeans, and they looked like a mix of a flying ace and someone from the 80s. Krejjh spotted Violet almost immediately. Last semester, they were partners on a project in their English class and Krejjh had become a friend. One of Violet’s closer friends in fact. Not that there were too many of those…

“HEY VIOLET LIU!” shouted Krejjh, breaking her out of that train of thought. Krejjh’s face grined at her, eyes going wide. “How’ve you been? Glad I don’t have Mr. Jasper this semester, boy he was strict right?” They realized that Apollo was still there and continued, “Oh sorry! Uh, could I have, er, frack.  _ Cafe au lait? _ ”

Apollo, baffled by Krejjh’s usual demeanor, replies quickly, “Nope, sorry Krejjh, we don’t have that in stock. Not much demand for it usually. And I’m not sure if I’m allowed to serve warm milk.” He frowns in thought at that. “I can probably get you something else though. You like juice?”

Violet watches their interaction, entrapped. This was two vastly different worlds meeting. Krejjh in such a calm environment just seemed off, like they don’t belong somewhere this quiet. They’re always where the action’s happening, on the tennis court or off.

Meanwhile Apollo’s calm and collected nature screams “I write down my plans for next month in a leather-bound planner.” He was their polar opposite in taste and mannerisms. Yet they seemed to know each other. Violet filed that away to ask one of them next time they were one on one. 

“-or you want bubble tea? We have green and black tea to go in that,” finished Apollo.

Krejjh replied, “Green’s fine, thanks,” and flashed a smile before heading- oh, they were heading towards Violet. 

“So? How’s life been going for you, Violet Liu?” asked Krejjh, sitting down across from her. “You doing or have done anything for the ‘holiday season’? I’ve been getting  _ so much  _ stuff with these deals.”

Violet chucked at that before responding, “No, nothing really happening this year. My parents usually have something but they’re remodeling the house and no one else is hosting it seems. Hence, me still being on campus on the 21st and not somewhere else.” 

“Well that sucks Liu. Sorry ‘bout that. I got nothing planned either, which is kinda what I wanted to talk to you about.” Krejjh spread their hands like a card player revealing their hand. “Me, my be-ef, and two other friends were planning a road-trip to Washington. You interested in hitchin along for the ride? Someone had to back out at the last minute, so there’s a spare seat in the van.” They seemed unusually motivated in this endeavor, but then again that might just be her sleep deprivation talking.

“Thanks for the offer Krejjh, but I’m going to pass. I’m not sure about going on a road trip with three strangers, even if you are dating one of them. And besides, you know I’m not good with most people.”

Krejjh gave her a look. “You sure? Your plans seem kinda lonely and I’m not sure you have any social interactions planned for the break. This would be fun! I can finally play you that album I’ve told you about!”

“I’ll be alright, don’t worry about me. I’ll find something to do, might go to the shelter and walk some dogs for them,” said Violet. 

After pausing for a moment, Krejjh relented. “Okie-dokie, if you say so I guess. But if you change your mind Vi, we’re meeting in the McDonald’s parking lot on Westbridge at 8 AM tomorrow. Got it?” 

Apollo hit the little bell on the counter and Krejjh went up to get their tea. They started humming some obscure anime theme song that Violet had heard maybe once before as they walked out the door.

Violet exhaled deeply. It’s not that she didn’t like Krejjh, but she didn’t want to impose. And plus, going on a road trip to Washington State with three strangers is kinda weird right? And she should really be doing work over the break and besides, she had been meaning to organize her closet. But maybe she was overthinking it? Or is she overthinking overth-

“One mint tea for one Violet Liu,” announced Apollo as he set the cup down. “D’ya think you’re going to do it?”

After staying quiet for a few seconds, looking into her tea, Violet said quietly, “You know, there’s not just one Violet Liu. My roommate freshman year had the same name. The person overseeing it must’ve thought it would be so funny or something. But it just kinda showed me that I wasn’t anything too special. Nothing’s worse than knowing you’re not even the best Violet Liu at the university.”

“Ah,” replied Apollo quietly. “Y’know, I think you should do it. I know most of them and they’re good people. Pretty sure you’re going to love Brian, Krejjh’s partner. He’s great.”

Violet looked up at him inquisitively. “How do you know all them anyways? You always seem to know everyone it’s kinda creepy.”

“I run their D&D campaign,” he deadpans. Violet immediately cracks up, a wide smile appearing on her face. 

She wiped a tear from her eye. “Thanks I needed that.” Apollo looked at her expectantly and after a few seconds, she caved. “Fine, I’ll go, but you are texting me everything about this D&D campaign tomorrow. You never struck me as the fantasy type.”

He smirked and said, “I’ll text you, but you should probably head home to pack and sleep. Wouldn’t want you sleeping in tomorrow.”

Violet began gathering up her . “Alright, alright, I’m leaving! And hey,” she turned back before exiting the store, “Thanks again Apollo.”

“No problem Violet, anytime. That is, as long as I can still use your Netflix password.” And with that, he turned back to the counter as Violet exited the store.

* * *

_ History Maker - by Dean Fujioka _

* * *

 

11:47 PM, Friday, December 22, 2018

 

**VIOLET** \- Hey Krejjh?

**KREJJH** \- whats up vi

**VIOLET** \- I think I’m going to come tomorrow if that’s alright? 

**KREJJH** \- YES THAT IS DEFINITELY ALRIGHT WOOHOO

**KREJJH** \- I. CANT. *WAIT*!!!!!!!!!!!

**VIOLET** \- :)

 


	2. Of New Companions and Familiar Feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the rest of the crew is introduced, Sana teases Arkday, and Violet gets some things wrong (but doesn't know it yet).

Arkady Patel is not a people person. She doesn’t like group projects. Her Twitter password is literally “LoneWolfGal”, despite the fact that it would be so easy for a program to get it. So when her best friend and eternal annoyance dragged her on a road trip, Arkady was not happy to be forced to wake up at 5:30 on a Sunday only to wait in a McDonald’s for twenty five minutes.

“I just don’t understand why you don’t have any fries,” she told the cashier for the second time.

“I told you already. If it’s before eleven, we only have our breakfast menu. After that, there’s full access to our lunch and dinner menus,” replied the cashier, strained. “Could I interest you in a hashbrown instead?”

With a sigh, Arkady relented. “Sure I guess.” After handing over a dollar, the cashier went off to… fry it she guessed? She wasn’t too positive on the inner workings of the McDonald’s kitchen.

The hash brown came out and Arkady walked over to the booth near the side window that Sana sat in. She absentmindedly tapped her fingers on her coffee cup while she looked for the van.

“I still don’t get why I can’t order fries right now,” began Arkady. Sana let out a quick, sharp laugh.

She responded, “You know they use the same deep-fryer for hash browns and fries right? So if they offer one they can’t offer the other?”

“Well, I do now. But I still don’t get it. If there’s twenty-four hour breakfast, why can’t there be twenty-four hour lunch?” In a drawl she added, “This is the greatest issue facing our generation.”

“Brian said that they’re on their way finally, something about an alarm not going off and Krejjh getting a phone call from a relative back in Paris.” After taking a sip of coffee and looking out for a minute, Sana continued, “Y’know, I don’t think he was telling me everything. You think he’s alright?”

Arcady snorted. “Jeeter? Don’t worry, he’s probably fine, just stressing over whether some old Old French word best translates as, like, dresser or armoire. Or maybe cabinet.” Sana laughed, almost too loud for the quiet hum of a fast food factory, and she trailed off.

“Sometimes,” she started, sitting up straighter and straightening her vest, “those RA instincts help. And other times, I just end up fretting too much. I need to take my mind off Brian,” she said to herself before setting her palms on the table in front of her and getting an excited look on her face. “What do you know about Krejjh’s invitee?”

Arkady leaned back a bit, startled by Sana’s eagerness. “ _Shouldn’t you be used to that by now?”_ asks a little voice in her head. She shrugged. “Krejjh wouldn’t tell me anything. Said it was their ‘solstice gift’ to me, which sounds a lot like they couldn’t find anything that they thought I’d like.” Arkady paused. “Why? Did they tell you who it is?”

“Oh yeah, but I’ve never heard of her. I think Brian said her name was Violet Liu?” said Sana with a smirk. Arkady was in the middle of taking a drink of her coffee as she said that and Arkady suddenly choked on her drink. “Name mean anything to you?” Sana asked innocently.

Arkady, to her credit and eternal relief, played it off well. “Nope. Never heard of her,” she claimed even as she felt her heart rate increase. Unfortunately for her, Arkady was talking to her best friend and the only person she had ever met that was a human lie detector. Sana grinned. “You don’t have to tell me right now, just know that the quicker you spill, the easier I’ll be on you in the long run.”

“Why are you doing this to me,” groaned Arkady, as she closed her eyes and leaned her head back. “Consider it payback for Campbell last year,” stated Sana simply and, yep, that makes a lot more sense now. “Y’know, I think I’ll still miss him this trip, but I am very glad that this ‘Violet’ is coming, if only for you to finally get a taste of your own medicine.”

Arkady nodded her head forward and banged it softly on the McDonald's table. “God, remind me again why I’m friends with you.” Sana smiled but said nothing.

* * *

**_Mamma Mia - by ABBA_ **

* * *

 

Violet was nervous. Well, she was always nervous, that was a given.  But she was specifically nervous about meeting new people. She always somehow messed up first impressions, she always had mismatched socks on or talked too much or talked too little or tripped on nothing. Introductions were not her strong suit.

She had packed clothes for two more days along with her coat, her laptop, and medication tray in her four year old duffel bag. Violet also packed some YA paperback she found in the bookstore bargain bin that didn’t look half bad, along with a few cracker packs and a water bottle. After hesitating for half a second, she also put her first aid kit in there. Didn’t want a repeat of meeting Apollo.

Clad in jeans, a comfortable sweatshirt, and a baseball cap, Violet left her apartment and locked her door, only having worried about meeting Krejjh’s friends three times that morning. She walked outside of her apartment building and put the McDonald's into Google Maps just to check to see that it was the right one. With an estimated arrival time of 7:56 she would be just on time. Violet Liu slipped her earbuds in, queued some angry grunge on, and began the small trek.

The streets of Nebula, California were quiet on Sunday morning, the old college town either still asleep or else already at work. There were only a few others on the sidewalk besides her, a few kids riding their bikes and a jogger that passed by her quickly. Other than them, Violet just tried to enjoy the crisp winter air.

 _“God I hope they don’t suck. I mean, they probably won’t, and it’s a short trip anyways,  only to Washington, so it shouldn’t be too bad, but still. What if they’re biphobic? What if they’re creeps? ...No, Krejjh wouldn’t hang out with those people, right? At least, I hope not.”_ Her fingers drummed against her denim covered legs as the McDonalds came into sight.

It was a different one than where she usually went, in the opposite direction of the university and more on the outskirts of town, where the suburban landscape of quaint cookie cutter homes gave way to the vast expanse of trees or cleared lots. The McDonalds looked like any other, though, and she could see that it was doing well for a Sunday morning.

Suspiciously, there didn’t seem to be a large van in the parking lot. Or perhaps it wasn’t too suspicious, since in all the time Violet had known Krejjh, they had never been on time. Violet checked her watch. 8:00 on the dot. _“Well,”_ she thought, _“might as well get something to eat if I’m early.”_

She walked into the McDonalds, unconsciously scanning her surroundings. It too was sparse, with four or so people behind the counter and in the kitchen, and three customers sitting down. An older guy read the newspaper while sitting in a side window seat and two women about her age sat in the front near the window. One looked vaguely familiar, she really needed to work on remembering people.

Violet went over to the counter and looked over the menu. “ _Guess they don't have lunch yet…”_ The man behind to counter turned back to the register and looked at her.

“Um, could I have a small hot chocolate?”, asked Violet.

The man rang it up and replied, “That’ll be $2.56.”

She grabbed a five from her pocket and handed it to the man.

“$2.44 is your change, have a good day,” he stated, smiling with little warmth in the way only cashiers can. _“Who could blame him,”_ thought Violet, “ _The service industry is horrible, and probably a special kind of horrible on a Sunday morning.”_ She began to walk over to a table opposite to the older man when she looked outside and spotted someone driving so wildly, but with such good handling that it could only be Krejjh. The van looked like it was from when she was in Elementary School, but it was surprisingly well kept, as if someone had just taken it out of a picture and plopped it on the ground.

Krejjh parked the vehicle in the nearly empty lot and jumped out of it. A man got out of the passenger seat, slower than Krejjh, trying to regain his balance from the ride. Violet took one look at the man, closed her eyes, and took a sip of her hot chocolate. She was no stranger to Krejjh’s driving, but it was certainly an… experience each time.

Krejjh and the man Violet had to assume was Brian, walked into the McDonalds together. Krejjh beamed when they made eye-contact with Violet. “Violet Liu! I’m stoked you could make it! This is going to be SO FUN!” With that last exclamation, the old man across the room shot them a dirty look before going back to his crossword. Krejjh, for their part, seemed a bit bashful but Brian was grinning.

“Hey, you must be Violet,” said the man as he smiled. “I’m Brian, but you can call me Jeeter,” he continued, as he outstretched his hand to shake. Jeeter was wearing a technicolor NASA t-shirt with a darker jacket obscuring some of it. As she shook his hand, she heard footsteps from behind her.

Krejjh beamed again. “Sana Tripathi and Arkady Patel! How the heck have you two rascals been?”

Violet turned around and saw the two women that had been sitting in a booth had come over. The taller one had a silvery vest on, with her hair put up. She had a warm smile on her face and a relaxed attitude. The other woman–the one who had seemed familiar–was much more tense. She had a bemused look on her face, though, and she slipped her hands into her jean jacket pockets. “It’s only been two days, Krejjh,” the familiar woman responded.

The taller woman turned towards Violet. “Hi, I’m Sana Tripathi, and my friend over here,  as you might’ve guessed, is Arkady.” The woman, no, _Arkady_ turned to Violet and her face went blank. Her brown eyes quickly scanned Violet, as if Arkady was assessing her threat level or something.

After a second or two, Arkady glanced back up at Violets face and said, almost looking through her with another smirk, “I call shotgun.”

Jeeter groaned. “Man, I knew I was forgetting something. Alright, but someone else gets to pick the first disc, okay? I can’t listen to another Leanne Tao song on repeat for sixty minutes.”

“Alright,” she conceded after a beat with a devilish smile, “but the band is ‘And The Destroyer’, and for getting that wrong, they are _definitely_ going to be my first choice to play.”

Sana broke into the discussion before it could get too offtrack. “So! It sounds like Krejjh is driving, Arkady’s in the passenger, and us three are in the back. Don’t worry, the Rumor’s quite spacious.” She smiled and began to make her way to the door.

The five of them walked outside as Violet asked, “Wait, what’s the Rumor?”

“Only the best-kept 2002 Mercury VIllager you can find on the road!” replied Krejjh, in their ever chipper voice.

Sana smiled. “The Rumor’s kind of a shared vehicle between me, Brian and Krejjh. Brian bought it at a garage sale two years ago, nearly brand new for a good price. He doesn’t know too much about cars though, so whenever he needed to get it fixed he came to me. But Krejjh is the only one of the three of us that can legally drive, so they have to shuttle us around if we use it. It’s a really weird system, but hey, it works.” Sana shrugged as she reached the van and opened up the side door, revealing two island seats and a bench in the way back.

“If y’all could put your bags in the trunk, I would very much appreciate that, mes amis,” requested Krejjh as they hopped into the driver’s seat and closed the door. Brian laughed and Violet heard something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like ‘ _classic Krejjh…’_ Well, it looked like even if Arkady wasn’t thrilled to have her, Brian and Sana were nice enough. 2/3 isn’t a bad ratio in the grand scheme of things.

Violet loaded her suitcase into the back of the van, hopped into the van, and took her seat on the back bench. _“Hey,”_ she thought to herself, _“even if Arkady is a bit snarky, at least I’ll only have to deal with her for a few days.”_ And with that pleasant, wrong-in-a-few-ways thought, Violet buckled her seatbelt, tried to relax, and readied herself for the wild ride that Krejjh’s driving would surely be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy belated American Thanksgiving! Sorry for the long wait, life's busy, you get the drill. I'm hoping to get the next chapter up by New Years, but no promises. Who knows, it could be a tad earlier! Hope you all enjoyed!

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you all enjoyed! This is my first try at longform fic in a while, and updates may be very sporadic, but I promise to try to get this finished! :)


End file.
